| The following forms of Urdu poetry are known, | | | | Maulana Altaf Husain Hali.naat |
| some more popular than others:fard | | | | A poem written in praise of the holy |
| ubaayiisalaamsehraavaasoKhtfard | | | | Prophet.nazm |
| A composition consisting of only one sher. | | | | In a broad sense, nazm is a term used to define |
| Gazal (pronounced ?guzzle?) | | | | all kinds of Urdu poetry which do not fall into any |
| Ghazal is a collection of couplets (shers or ashaar) | | | | other category. However, in a literary sense, a |
| which follow the rules of 'matla', 'maqta', 'bahar', | | | | nazm is a well organized, logically evolving poem |
| 'qafiya' and 'radeef'. The couplets are complete in | | | | where each individual verse serves the need of |
| themselves. All the couplets of a ghazal must be | | | | the central concept or theme of the poem. |
| of the same bahar, end in the same words | | | | Though a nazm is traditionally written in rhymed |
| (radeef) and have the same rhyming pattern | | | | verse, there are many examples of nazms |
| (qaafiyaa). Every ghazal MUST have a matla. A | | | | written in unrhymed verse, or even in free |
| ghazal may or may not have a maqta but if it | | | | verse.qasiidaa (pronounced ?quh-see-daa?) |
| does, it has to be the last sher of the ghazal. | | | | A panygeric, or poem written in praise of a king |
| Ghazals which do not have a radeef are called | | | | or a nobleman, or a benefactor. As in a ghazal, |
| Gair-muraddaf ghazals. In such cases, the rule of | | | | the opening couplet of a qasida, is a rhyming |
| qafiya is strictly followed. These type of ghazals | | | | couplet, and its rhyme is repeated in the second |
| are very rare. Ghazals with the same radeef are | | | | line of each succeeding verse. The opening part of |
| called ham-radeef ghazals.hamd | | | | the qasida, where the poet may talk in general |
| Poem written in praise of God.hazal | | | | about love and beauty, man or nature, life or |
| Humourous poetry, also known as 'mazaahiyaa' or | | | | death, is called the 'tashbib' or 'tamheed'. |
| 'mazaakiyaa' shaayari. Some examples of | | | | Interestingly, the ghazal has evolved from the |
| humourous Urdu poetry can be viewed here.hijv | | | | qasida. Over time, the tashbib got detached and |
| A satirical poem written to condemn or abuse a | | | | developed into what we today know as Gazal. A |
| person. This type of poetry is considered inferior | | | | qasida is usually quite long, sometimes running into |
| and generally avoided by reputed poets. The | | | | mor than a 100 couplets. A Gazal is seldom more |
| opposite of a hijv is a madah which is written in | | | | than 12 couplets long, averaging about 7 |
| praise of patrons.madah | | | | couplets.qataa |
| Poem written in praise of royalty, patrons, | | | | A poem consisting of four lines, in the form of |
| etc.manqabat | | | | two shers. However, unlike shers in a ghazal, the |
| A poem written in praise of members of the | | | | subject of the two shers is the same. It is |
| family of the holy Prophet.marsiiyaa | | | | believed that the qataa was invented for |
| (muhr-see-yaa) | | | | occasions when poets felt that they were unable |
| An elegy written to mourn the death of a great | | | | to express their thoughts completely and |
| man or a dearly loved person. In its stricter | | | | satisfactorily in a single sher.qavaalii |
| sense, traditionally accepted in Urdu, a marsiya is | | | | Traditionally a devotional song expressing love and |
| an elegy written specifically in honour of the | | | | oneness with God sung by a group of people to |
| martyrdom of Hazrat Imam Husain and his | | | | the accompaniment of musical instruments. |
| comrades at Karbala. It describes the battle | | | | Nowadays, qawaallis cover popular topics like love |
| fought on the plains of Karbala by Hazrat Imam | | | | and wine.rubaayii(pronounced ?ru-baa-ee?) |
| Husain against the army of Yazid. The most well | | | | A self-sufficient quartrain, rhyming (a, a, b, a) and |
| known writers of Marsiya in Urdu are Mir baber Ali | | | | dealing generally with a single idea, which is |
| Anees and Salamat Ali Dabir. Sub-parts of the | | | | customarily introduced and developed with the aid |
| marsiya are called Nauha and | | | | of similes in the first three lines, and concluded, |
| Soz.masnavii(pronounced ?mus-na-vee?) | | | | with concentrated effort and impact, in the fourth |
| A long narrative poem - much longer than the | | | | line.The most well known rubaayis in Persian were |
| ghazal - embodying religious, romantic or didatic | | | | written by Omar Khayyam. In Urdu, some of the |
| stories. It is written in rhyming couplets, with each | | | | most well known practitioners of this form were |
| couplet having a different rhyme and radeef. The | | | | Firaq, Josh and Yagna Yaas Changezi.salaam |
| most famous masnavis are Masnavi-e-Rumi in | | | | A salutory poem written in praise of the holy |
| Persian, Shah Namah of Firdausi, and Zehar-e-Ishq | | | | Prophet. It can also be a poem describing the |
| in Urdu.munaajaat | | | | incidents of Karbala. It is recited standing up.sehraa |
| A lyrical poem written as a prayer to | | | | A song sung at the time of tying the seharaa |
| God.musaddas | | | | during the wedding ceremony. It is usually in praise |
| A poem in which each unit consists of 6 lines. The | | | | of the bride/groom and their relatives. |
| most well known poet of this style of writing was | | | | |